PROFILE

By Mike Watchmaker

STRENGTHS
Finished sixth in the Kentucky Derby, beaten only 5 1/2 lengths for all the money, and that was a creditable performance. He couldn’t have gotten much out of a ninth-place finish in the Blue Grass in his final Derby prep. The Blue Grass was his first start in two months, and only his second start since last November, and he never really had a chance to even stretch his legs in that event because he was bottled up inside for virtually the entire stretch run. So there is a chance he was a short horse when he ran in the Derby. And in the Derby, he raced closer to the rail than many others in that race did, most notably the first four finishers, and the rail was certainly not the place to be at Churchill Downs on Derby Day. He was flattered to some degree when Astrology, the colt he beat when he won the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes last fall in his final start at 2, finished a relatively close third in the Preakness Stakes. Finally, he has a pedigree that suggests he is better equipped to handle the Belmont Stakes distance than most.

WEAKNESSES
His win in the Kentucky Jockey Club last year remains his only victory. And while all three of his Beyer Figures this year are better than any of the Beyers he received last year at 2 – which is always an encouraging sign as it confirms he has progressed with maturity – the fact remains he has yet to break the triple-digit Beyer barrier, which Derby winner Animal Kingdom and Preakness winner Shackleford already have done.

BETTING VALUE
He won’t be anywhere near the 34-1 he was in the Derby, but he does figure to be a higher price than Animal Kingdom, Nehro, Shackleford, Mucho Macho Man, and Master of Hounds, which should put him in the 12-1 to 15-1 range. He is a legitimate upset candidate, and should be used in all wagers.

PEDIGREE ANALYSIS

By Dan Illman

Sire:
Giant's Causeway was as courageous as he was classy, winning five consecutive Group 1 races on grass in Europe -- all of them by less than a length. A beautifully bred son of Storm Cat, Giant's Causeway won at distances ranging from six furlongs to about 1 5/16 miles, and he earned a 116 Beyer for his only start on dirt when second in the Breeders' Cup Classic.

While many of Giant's Causeway's top performers excelled on turf (French Derby winner Sharmardal, Ascot Gold Cup hero Rite of Passage, Clement L. Hirsch Memorial winner Red Giant), he also gets his share of top dirt runners (Champagne winner First Samurai, Wood Memorial champ Eskendereya, Donn winner Giant Oak). He is one of the best stallions in the world and injects plenty of stamina into his progeny.

Dam:
Santiva is a full brother to Her Majesty, a filly that was Grade 2-placed at 1 1/16 miles on Polytrack (won at a mile on synthetic). Take Arms, a half-sibling, was Grade 2-placed sprinting, and was able to win at 1 1/16 miles.

The dam is an unraced half-sister to multiple Grade 1 sprint winner Safely Kept, the champion sprinter of 1989. Another half-sibling, Partner's Hero, was a Grade 2 sprint winner, while Safe at the Plate was multiple stakes-placed.

Outlook:
Santiva's pedigree boasts a fascinating mix of stamina over speed. He may be best at races up to nine furlongs, however, leaving the Belmont distance a tough task.